Incredibly Small Apartment in Paris Reduces Functions to Minimum

Can you imagine an 8 square meter apartment? You might think this compact space can probably fit your wardrobe. Yet this apartment design relies on functionality cleverly hidden behind simplicity. This small apartment in Paris was designed by Kitoko Studio for an au pair taking care of the kids. In the old Haussmann buildings, maid rooms have long been crowded and on their way to becoming storage. But this modular design presents a refreshing way of using available square meters to optimize living conditions.

Kitoko Studio proves that these types of rooms that later became storage can cleverly be aesthetically lifted to maintain their purpose with style. “Always located on the top level under the roof of these buildings, they are characterized by their small size, with rudimentary aesthetic interior spaces and common circulations difficult to access. It’s a “non architecture” within the beautiful Haussmann architecture. (…) “It’s due to a lack of space and in anticipation of the coming of a future au pair they cannot receive directly in their apartment that our clients have entrusted us with the difficult task of arranging the 8sqm maid’s room. Despite the small area, the space had to be functional in order to sleep, and also to cook, eat, wash, work and store a maximum of items. The space should guarantee the independence of the future occupant.”

Using the “concept of the Swiss Army knife”, the design studio arranged functions in such a way to fit the extremely small space and make good use of it. Photographs by Fabienne Delafraye and the video below show how compact, hardly used spaces can become easy-to-live-in apartments.